Chapter 10 :) The result of binge watching all seasons of American horror story :P this is not that scary though. :)

Alex got home from shopping, and all she saw around the building were Jack-o'-lanterns, plastic spiders and paper bats on the bare trees. The Diaz family was outside putting up Halloween decorations. The sky was dark, gray, it looked like it could rain any minute. It was pouring the entire day. It's a miracle it actually stopped. Alex took the chance and made her way to the nearby store before it would start again. It will probably rain tomorrow too. Alex wasn't really looking forward to a rainy Halloween.

She walked to the living room. Piper and Nicky were sitting on the ground in front of the TV, carving pumpkins.

'Hey, guys.'

'Hey.' Piper and Nicky said at once, not even bothering to look up. Piper had her tongue over her upper-lip, showing how much she was concentrating on her task.

Alex went to the kitchen and unpacked the groceries. There was a lot of candy for tomorrow. Alex always thought Halloween was the most stupid holiday. Right after Valentine's day, of course. A bunch of kids dressed up in costumes going from house to house, asking for candy. At least it was scary, or supposed to be scary. It sure was in prison.

When she was done, she walked back to the living room and sat down next to Piper. She looked at the pumpkin.

'What exactly is this going to be?' she frowned.

'Jigsaw.' Piper looked at her. 'Isn't it obvious?'

Alex studied the thing Piper was carving. It looked like anything but Jigsaw. 'Yeah...' Alex said. 'It's really nice.'

'Hmm. I know exactly what you're thinking, sasquatch.' Piper said. 'I can feel the sarcasm radiating from your words.'

'What? No. It really is nice.. if you're trying to win the prize for the shittiest jack-o'-lantern of 2014.' Alex chuckled.

'Yeah? Well, take a look at Nicky's pumpkin, and then tell me who has the shittiest lantern.' Piper snapped, offended.

'Come on, I'm just fucking with you.' Alex kissed Piper's cheek and then looked at Nicky's pumpkin.

'Is that a coochie?'

'Oh, yeah.' Nicky turned it to Alex's direction. 'I call it 'The Vagina Lantern'.' she said proudly.

Alex laughed and shook her head. 'Is pussy all you ever think of?'

'Basically, yeah.'

'Well, I don't think you can put it outside, cause', you know..it's a vagina.'

'Oh, no? Funny, cause' that's exactly what I'm going to do, right now.' Nicky took the lantern and walked out the door.

'Oh, man. The kids coming here will be traumatized for a lifetime.' Alex laughed.

'M-hm.' Piper kept carving with a perfect poker face.

'Oh, come on, Pipes' Alex nudged the blondie, '...it's not my fault that you're shitty at crafting.' she chuckled.

'Okay. I get it. My jack-o'-lantern sucks, I get it, Alex! Now, could you stop insulting it?..I really tried to make it look nice, or well..decent...' Piper's tone got a little sad at the end of her speech, and Alex thought it was adorable.

'Aww, come here.' Alex pulled Piper in her embrace and kissed the side of her forehead.

'You're an asshole.'

'No, I'm not.' Alex said. 'I'm just a very honest person.'

'Same thing.' Piper pulled away. 'I need to finish this.'

'Hey, could you come with me to the hospital tomorrow?' Alex suddenly changed the topic.

'Tomorrow? But it's Halloween. And I thought you were gonna go today.'

'I know. I wanted to, but I couldn't.'

'Why not?'

'I'm just not ready.' Alex said. 'I mean, it's really no big deal, but still. I need someone with me.'

'Okay. I'll go with you.'

'Thank you.' Alex kissed the blondie.

'This doesn't mean you're forgiven.' Piper said. 'You've really hurt my emotions when you insulted my pumpkin, Alex. But you see, you'll pay for it.'

Alex chuckled. 'Is that supposed to be a threat?'

'Nope, no such thing. By the way, do you know where we are going tomorrow? I mean, after we've been to the hospital, of course.'

'To a halloween party?' Nicky told them she's taking them to a party. She haven't told Alex where it's gonna be though...

'Yeah. To Lorna's halloween party.' Piper smirked.

'No.' Alex immidiately protested. 'No fucking way I'm going there again. Not after yesterday.'

'But Alex, you have to. Everyone is gonna be there.'

'Maybe, but I won't.'

'Don't be such a pussy. And anyway, what's the likelihood of the elevator getting stuck for a second time, just exactly when you are there?'

'With my luck...'

'Well, we can always take the stairs, if you're so freaked out.'

'To the 22nd floor?'

'Yeah. Not a problem for me, considering I run 10 miles every other day..' Piper looked at Alex, who had her 'are-you-fucking-kidding-me' face on. 'Hey, I can carry you on my back if you want to.'

'Deal.'

'Okay.' Piper smirked. 'At least you see how far I'm willing to go for you.' she jokingly said and ran her hand along Alex's back. 'Carrying such a weight all the way to the 22nd floor..' she rested her head against Alex's shoulder.

'I'm not that heavy.' Alex chuckled and put an arm around Piper's waist.

'Whatever you say, sasquatch.' Piper smiled. She loved having moments like this with Alex. This place always felt like home to her, but with Alex it feels like heaven.

Flashback

'Wake up!'

Alex heard a voice.

'Alex, wake up!'

She opened her eyes and saw a pair of blue ones staring at her.

'Piper.'

'Yeah. It's me.' Piper smiled.

'What happened?' Alex asked.

'You fell asleep. They got the electricity back on.'

Alex looked around. They were still in the elevator, but the lights were back on and the door was open.

'Come on, let's get to Lorna's apartment.'

Piper helped Alex to stand up and they finally got out of the elevator.

When they walked in, Piper saw a lot of familiar faces. Lorna was on the couch, laying on Nicky's chest. Christopher was passed out in the armchair, right next to them. Max was sitting on the ground with a glass of whiskey,talking to Maritza. Tricia was at the table with her girl, Mercy. Flaca and her boyfriend Ian were there too.

Piper figured it's not the best time to introduce Alex to Poussey, Taystee, Cindy and Brook. Maybe next time. It was the usual group, with a few folks missing. There were some other friends of Lorna too, Piper didn't know them.

She and Alex went to the kitchen. Alex sat down.

'Here.' Piper handed her a glass of water.

'Thanks.'

The blondie sat down next to her.

'My aunt overdosed.' Alex said suddenly.

'What?'

'You wanted to know what's bothering me, well my aunt OD'd on cocaine.'

'Oh.' Piper realized what Alex just said. 'Shit. I'm sorry, Alex... Is she, you know..'

'No, no she's not dead. Although, she might be in a couple of days.'

Piper reached for Alex's hand, which was laying on the table.

'You know...' Alex continued. 'I never even liked the bitch. Actually.. I really fucking hated her. But now that she's dying- I don't know. I just can't hold grudges against someone who's on their death bed..'

'Hey,' Piper cut in. 'Maybe she won't die, you said she might die, so she might as well survive, right?'

'I doubt. She had a kidney failure, her heart's out of control, it's a miracle she's still alive. The thing is, I'm not even gonna miss her. I don't even really care if she dies. She treated me like dirt all my life.'

Piper just nodded.

'I'm gonna see her tomorrow.'

'Alex, I'm sorry.' Piper said.

'I know, you already said that..'

'Not for your aunt. I mean, for her too, but I'm sorry for what I said earlier. I don't hate you.'

Alex smiled.'Well, I don't hate you either.'

They stared at each other for a couple of seconds.

'That was beautiful.' They were interrupted by Nicky, who was standing in the door, clapping.

'How long have you been there?' Piper asked.

'Long enough to hear your declaration.' Nicky smirked. 'Really heartwarming.'

'Very funny.' Alex said sarcastically.

'I was gonna get a beer from the fridge, but since you're having a moment here... I don't want to ruin it for you.'

'Too late.' Piper said.

'Yup. Well I'm outie.' Nicky said and disappeared.

'Um, so...uh,' Piper stuttered, searching for words to say. 'Friends?' that's all she got out.

'Friends.' Alex chuckled.

End of flashback

It was October 31st, Halloween, Friday. Everyone got a day off from work, even Red came home early, at 5 o'clock. Someone has to give candy to the trick-or-treaters, and since all Red's children will be off to Lorna's party, it has to be her. Stupid little brats come even here, to a damn apartment complex.

Alex and Piper were getting out of the Mercedes in front of the hospital. Visiting hours would end at 6, so they had a little more than an hour to visit Alex's aunt.

They were on the 3rd floor, where auntie Lisa had her room.

'So,' Piper started. 'are you ready?'

'Yeah.' Alex replied. 'I've just gotta pee first.'

'Oh! Don't look for excuses, sasquatch. You've gotta see her sooner or later.'

'I'm not looking for excuses. I need to pee since we left home, so wait for me here, okay?'

'Fine.' Piper sat down on the couch outside auntie Lisa's room.

Alex walked in the restroom and what she saw made her gasp in surprise.

'Auntie? What are you doing here?'

Auntie Lisa was standing by the sink, washing her hands.

'What do people usually do in restrooms? Jesus, Alex...'

Alex studied her aunt. She wore jeans and a t-shirt, her usual outfit, which was quite surprising given the circumstances. She looked pretty healthy for someone who just overdosed 3 days ago.

'Aren't you supposed to be in your room?' Alex asked. She thought for a while. Something wasn't right. 'They said you're in a coma.'

'Well, as you can see, I'm not anymore.'

Alex looked at her with suspicion.

'Hey, look, Alex.' auntie Lisa started. 'I know, things were quite bad between us. I didn't mean to be so mean to you, or to beat you... I'm really sorry for all that.'

Alex just stared at her. She never expected her aunt to apologize to her.

'Well... It's okay.' It really wasn't, but what is she supposed to say?

Auntie Lisa smiled. 'I've gotta go now.' she walked towards the door. Alex couldn't move, this all was just so hard to process, it was too weird. When the door shut, she came back to her senses.

'Wait!' she rushed to the door, and looked around the hall, but auntie Lisa was nowhere to be seen. It's like she just disappeared.

'Alex!' the brunette heard her name being called and looked to her right. Piper was standing in front of auntie Lisa's room with a doctor.

She walked up to them.

'Alex, I'm so sorry.' Piper placed a hand on Alex's shoulder.

'What happened?'

'Miss,' the doctor said. 'I'm sorry to inform you.. Your aunt passed about an hour ago.'

Alex looked at the doctor, completely shocked.

'We were about to call you-' the doctor continued but Alex interrupted him.

'Are you kidding me?' she asked. 'She.. I just saw her like a minute ago.'

'What? Alex, what are you talking about?' Piper frowned.

'In the restroom. Didn't you see her walk out?'

'No..'

'But-'

'Miss, I know it's hard to process...' the doctor said with a cautious voice, probably thinking Alex was crazy or something. 'I'll leave you two alone now.' he said and walked away.

'Piper, I swear, I just saw her.'

'But, the doctor said...'

'The doctor was lying, she was there! I wasn't seeing a fucking ghost!' Alex stopped for a while. 'Oh my god.. what if it was a ghost?' Alex said. She quickly shook that thought. 'No,no,no, that's.. that's bullshit, ghosts don't exist.' she looked at Piper, waiting for a confirmation.

'Well..' Piper said.

'What? ..You don't mean to tell me that I just talked to a fucking ghost..!' Alex laughed.

'Alex.. You see, it's Halloween.'

'You can't be serious!'

'I'm just saying that-' Piper stopped to think. 'You know how Halloween originated, right?' she asked. 'People believed that the boundaries between the spirit world and the world of the living overlap, and spirits are free to roam the Earth.'

'Piper, you don't actually believe that.' Alex laughed again.

'Well, other explanation is.. you were hallucinating. Like that episode of House M.D. where doctor House saw the dead chick, but it was all just in his head.'

'Right. Okay. So you're saying that I'm either batshit crazy, or I saw a fucking ghost.' Alex couldn't believe all the shit Piper just said.

'Yeah.' Piper nodded.

Alex thought about all of what just happened again. Auntie Lisa looked weird, healthy and all. There was no way she could look like that in her conditon. And the doctor said she died. He couldn't be lying. She wasn't crazy, she knew that, so the only option was, that it really was her ghost.

A wave of fear washed over Alex at the thought.

'Piper...' she grabbed the blondies hand. 'Let's get out of here.'

It was 7 o'clock and everyone in the Reznikov household was getting ready for the party. Everyone has to show up in a costume.

Nicky decided to dress up as the slutty maid from American Horror Story. She got her costume on e-bay. Maxim proved to be a skilled make-up artist. He made Nicky's right eye look like it took a bullet, just like on the show. It looked like an actual wound.

'Holy shit, dude.' Nicky said when she looked in the mirror.

'I know, right?' Max chuckled.

'It's great and all, but I can't see shit with this eye.'

'Well, you're not supposed to. It's been shot out, remember?'

Piper and Alex walked in Nicky's room. The blondie was dressed in a slutty soldier costume. Max already did her make up, a gunshot wound on her forehead with blood dripping down her face.

Nicky turned around and both Alex and Piper stepped back in shock.

'Shit!' Alex cursed. 'Why do you guys have to be slutty and bloody at the same time?'

'Cause' it's halloween.' Nicky replied. 'It's all about the scare. And slutiness if you're a girl.'

Nicky studied Alex. She had a wedding dress with stickers on it. Stickers like FedEx or Russia. She held a cardboard box that looked like a suitcase, it also had stickers. In her other hand she held a bouquet.

Nicky pointed at her 'And you are?-'

'She's a Russian mail order bride.' Piper said.

Nicky and Max laughed.

'I'm on a budget, okay?' Alex said defensively. 'And it was Red's idea. She made me pick up an accent too- hey what the fuck?' she asked when Max sprayed the rest of the fake blood all over her.

'I'm not done yet.' Max smirked. He took a pair of scissors and started cutting the dress. Alex just stood there with her arms spread. Then he messed up her hair and when he was done, he took a step back and Piper and Nicky joined him. All the three of them looked at Alex.

'Here. Now you're a serial-killer Russian mail order bride.'

Alex turned around to look in the mirror. 'Dude... This is amazing!'

Max held out his hands and got a high five from both Nicky and Piper.

They made their way to the car under umbrellas and quickly got in. There was a storm. Alex was worried, she hoped the lights won't go out again. Max put on a red and white striped sweater and glasses before they left. He was Waldo.

They stood in front of the elevator. It finally arrived and everyone got in, except Alex.

'Come on.' Piper held out her hand and smiled.

Alex took it and reluctantly stepped in. The elevator started moving, and Alex started praying. When they arrived at the 22nd floor she sighed in relief.

They heard the music from Lorna's apartment the moment they stepped out. This is going to be one hell of a party.